Artificial bait body



Feb. 20, 1951 c. E. KEY ,5

ARTIFICIAL BAIT BODY Filed Jan. 26, 1950 INVENTOR CLYDE KEY A'I'OREYS Patented Feb. 20, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ARTIFICIAL BAIT BODY Clyde E. Key, Arkadelphia, Ark.

Application January 26, 1950, Serial No. 140,622,

. 1Claim.

The present, invention relates to improvements in artificial bait. body and has for an object to provide a body resembling that of a pot-bellied crippled minnow which when drawn through the water will set up, wide ripple waves attracting the nearby fish and enticing pursuit.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a bait body which when cast into a stream will assume an angle of; declination resembling a smaller fish attempting to catch surface insects thereby leaving itself vulnerable to attack from the; lower rear.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide a bait body simple in construction permitting of economic manufacture having a spinner, tail and belly hooks.

With the. foregoing and other objects in View, the invention will be more fully described hereinafter, and will be more particularly pointed out in the claim appended hereto.

In the drawings, wherein like symbols refer to like or corresponding parts throughout the several views,

Figure l is a perspective view of the improved artificial bait constructed in accordance with the present invention being drawn through the water, c

Figure 2 is a longitudinal vertical section of the improved artificial bait body showing the hook and spinner attaching members,

Figure 3 is a top plan view of the improved artificial bait body, and

Figure 4 is a front elevational View of the improved artificial bait body.

Referring more particularly to the drawings,

I!) designates a bait body of wood or other suitable material shaped to conform generally to the external configuration of a crippled minnow and painted in the color pattern of the type of minnow it is intended to represent.

At its fore end the body is provided with widespread upper and lower lips II and 12 which converge rearwardly to a mouth recess having a fiat rear wall l3. The body H! from a side elevational aspect is formed with a dropped enlarged pot-belly portion l intermediate the length of the body. The lower portion of the body is defined by semi-parabolic curves 25 and 2'! to opposite sides of the dropped belly M. The forward curve 25 is incurved from the forward edge of the belly l4 up to the lower edge of the lower lip 12. The rear curve 2! extends from the rear edge of the belly M to the lower portion of the tail E5. The focus and directrix of the curve 27 is of a higher value than the curve 26 resulting in the fact that the curve El has a broader sweep, while the forward curve 26 has a sharper arc penetrating deeper upwardly into the body It] between the points l4 and I2.

The upper portion of the body l0 forming the back of the fish is transversely rounded.

Viewed from top plan, as illustrated in Figure 3, the body [0 is transversely wider at its fore end tapering rearwardly to the tail [5 and having the general appearance of a truncated triangle.

The shank lfiofa hook cluster 30 is provided with an eye 3| which is swivelly secured to, a complemental eye 32 on the lower projecting end of a fastening H; such as a nail or screw. This fastening I! penetrates the wood or other material, of the body It, the fastening Fl being introduced from the bottom of the body approximately centrally of the belly I4 and the lower portion of the fastening I1 is enveloped and protected bya frustoconical ferrule I8 having an out-turned annular flange 33 fitted up against the lower wall of the belly l4 around the recess made to receive the ferrule I8.

Insertedinto the body 10 approximately centrally of its longitudinal axis and at the aft or tail endlf, is a fastening, such as a screw or nail l9 having a smooth bearing portion extending beyond the tail Hi to rotatablyreceive a spinner 2 which may consist of the three blades as shown. Washers 2| are freely fitted upon the bearing portion of the fastening H9 at opposite sides of the spinner 20. At the rearmost end of the fastening I9 is an eye 22 with which is swivelly engaged an eye 23 of a shank 3 4 of the hook cluster 35.

A staple 25 fixed in the lowerlip. l2 accommodates the fishing line 24 by which the lure may be drawn through the water.

The bait body with the applied hooks and spinner will have a center of mass or a center of gravity indicated generally at 28.

It will also be noted that the upper longitudinal edge of the bait body I is generally convexly curved. to simulate the upper contour of the minnow.

It will be noted from Figure 4 that the upper edge of the upper lip II and the lower edge of the lower lip 12 are both convexly rounded in a transverse sense.

It will be noted from Figure 2 that the plane face of the lower lip I2 from its free rounded edge to its upper straight edge adjoining the mouth reces is longer and of greater area than the similar length and area of the upper lip ll.

, clined blades.

It will also be noted from Figure 2 that the upper inner edge of the lower lip l2 is set longitudinal- 1y back of the lower inner edge of the upper lip 11. Moreover whereas the top wall 36 of the mouth recess is at substantially right angles with the rear flat wall l3, the lower wall 31 is inclined on an obtuse angle with respect to the plane of the rear wall I3 and such bottom wall 31 is at a different inclination than the inclination of the lower lip l2.

In operation, when the lure i thrown into the water without'any tension on the fishing line 24, the same will assume an inclined or diagonal position with the head uppermost and the body 10 inclining downwardly from the head toward the tail. This is due to the fact that the center of gravity 28 is ofiset rearwardly of the longitudinal center of the body I I]. A pull upon the line 24 will tend to rotate the body I about this center of gravity 28 to bring the body more nearly to a horizontal position. However the body is so con structed and weighted that under normal pull of the fishing line 24 as in trolling the body will assume substantially the position shown in Fi ure 1, namely in that inclined position which simulates a minnow ascending to the surface for the purpose of feeding upon surface insects. As pulled along by the fishing line 24, the hook cluster 30, 35 will trail in the manner indicated in Figure 1 and'the spinner 20 will be rotated due to the reaction of the slipstream against the in- This spinner in itself constitutes an attractive lure to larger fish and the crippled minnow form of the body [6, tinted or painted as indicated also invites attack from predatory fish.

As the minnow is drawn through the water by the line 24 the slipstream reacting on the lower lip 12 will cause relatively large masses of the water to impinge against the upright fiat wall 13 of the mouth recess which will react to set up ripples in the water which on account of this fiat wall and the substantial lateral length thereof,

such ripples will be propagated over a very large area to both sides of the minnow. Such broad ripples will set up sonar impulses and also visual impulses attractin the attention of fish inthe nearby area and. enticing pursuit. It is preferred also that the lower wall 31 of the mouth recess be tend to raise the head of the minnow and counteract too great lowering of the head of the minnow to avoid the horizontal position of the body II].

It will be noted that the head of the minnow is the widest portion of the lure which is general- 1y contrary to marine construction natural or man made and this enlargement is for the very purpose of creating the broad ripples as above described.

The improved bait has been found in practice to be highly successful with bass.

The forward incurved part 26 exposes the belly Hi to the slipstream as the lure is drawn through the water whereby the body I0 tends to orient itself to the desired inclination, and the water displaced by the belly l4 flows in against the aft incurved part 21 to tend to lift the tail portion for the same reason so that the incurved parts and belly. [4 by virtue of their relationship cooperate to maintain the minnow at a preselected angle of inclination, to which result the inclined lips H and I2 also contribute.

Although I have disclosed herein the best form of the invention known to me at this time, I reserve the right to all such modifications and changes as may come within the scope of the fol lowing claim. 7

What I claim is:

An artificial bait as herein described comprising a bait body in the form of a minnow having a dropped belly intermediate its ends with incurved parts fore and aft of said belly, a head at the fore end of said body having rearwardlyconvergent lips, and a mouth recess between the rear ends of the convergent lips, said recess having a rear substantially flat wall substantially normal to the direction of motion of the bait when pulled by a fishing line, the rear end of the lower lip being offset rearwardly from the rear end of the upper lip, said recess having a lower inclined wall joining the lower lip, a hook device carried by said body, and a fishing line attached to said head.

CLYDE E. KEY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Boshears Mar. 7, 1950 

